Powerful Selling Point
April 25, 2006
As the saying goes, you only get one chance to make a first impression. This is very true of construction firms and their use of project management technology.
With a wide range of vendors in the marketplace delivering similar functionality in their products, it’s often a struggle for contractors to determine which application best fits its business model. Often times the selling point is the product’s ability to come through in the clutch.
For commercial general contractor and multifamily builder Costanza Builders, www.costanzabuilders.com, Cherry Hill, N.J., it was sold on the Prolog project management product from Meridian Systems, www.meridiansystems.com, Folsom, Calif., upon initial implementation.
Costanza hit the ground running with Prolog, initially implementing the product for a large multisite school project. The project team had a limited timeframe in which to get the product up and running and needed users familiar with the functionality very quickly.
The product’s ability to centralize data and allow for updated information sharing between the project team and the home office impressed Costanza right from the start. The product was able to deliver immediate access to vital project information for both executives and accounting.
According to officials at the company, this gave the team the ability to be more proactive in managing each project. It also simplified intricate procedures such as closeout and job archiving.
Since initial implementation, Costanza Builders has continually upgraded its investment in Prolog. Company officials say its entire organization relies on the software for information.
After initially implementing online project management from USGN, www.usgn.net, Phoenix, Ariz., on a large hospitality project, construction management firm Tech Builders Inc., www.techbuildersinc.com, Fairmont, Minn., looks to make the product more of a standard going forward.
Brian Ruschy, project manager with Tech Builders, believes the information sharing capabilities is one of the biggest benefits of the system. Allowing project members to work more efficiently without the need to add workers in the field during this project has spurred the company to continue working with the application.
“The information sharing across the project team has been huge,” says Ruschy. “We look at it as a way to put less people in the field. (The hospitality project) is a huge job and it simplified our normal processes. With this application I can do (tasks) in the office what would normally require me to go onsite.”
As more partners—owners and subcontractors—continue to realize the benefits of using the online system Ruschy anticipates further adoption across the market.
There is something to be said for getting it right the first time. Technology that can execute on the specific needs of contractors the very first time will often get the call on all projects going forward.